ACTFL SPRING 2008 REPORT

Scholarship Opportunity! ACTFL and the Interamerican University Studies Institute are offering ACTFL members a scholarship for 2 weeks on study in Querétaro, Mexico during the summer of 2008. The program is fully accredited through the University of Oregon.  Details are available at www.actfl.org 

Great Gift. A great gift for a colleague new to the classroom is the ACTFL best-selling book, The Keys to the Classroom, which includes step-by-step hints and templates for new teachers.  The book can be ordered through the ACTFL store on the ACTFL website.

Travel to the Galapagos! Check www.iie.org/toyota for details on the 2008 Toyota International Teacher Program to the Galapagos Islands.  The program is open to secondary teachers and librarians. 

National Video Contest. The winning entries from the ACTFL National Video Contest are now available at http://www.actflvideocontest.org/  Log on to see these great examples of student created Foreign Language advocacy videos from Elementary School students through Post Secondary students.

ACTFL Conference. Begin planning now for the 2008 ACTFL Conference November 21-23 at the Walt Disney World Swan and Dolphin Resort in Orlando, Florida.  Don’t miss this opportunity to network with more than 6,000 teachers, administrators, method instructors and students of foreign languages at all levels from across the world. The convention features over 600 educational sessions on such topics as: Assessment, Culture, Curriculum, Learner Variables, Literature, Materials, Methods/Techniques, Policy/Issues, Professional Development, Research, Specific Purposes, Standards and Technology.

ACTFL Annual Report

Year in Review . ACTFL has had a busy year with several “firsts” for the organization.  The 2007 ACTFL Conference in San Antonio set a new attendance record with nearly 6700 attendees, while the membership has surpassed 10,000 with a total of over 10,500.  In the midst of all this record setting,  the home offices moved to much roomier quarters.  Though the address has changed (1001 N. Fairfax St., Suite 200, Alexandria, VA  22314), the phone, fax, email and web information has not changed. 

The Delegate Assembly undertook consideration of the following items: A Code of Ethics for ACTFL members based on the Code of Ethics adopted in 2006 for the ACTFL Board of Directors.  The Code of Ethics for members will address the areas of Commitment to the Student, Professional Expertise, Professional Community, and Public Responsibility and should be available by the 2008 ACTFL Conference.

Virtual Mentoring Program. For the 2007/2008 school year, ACTFL is piloting a virtual Mentoring Program designed to help early career language educators succeed in their current assignments and learn the skills for long-term career success. Mentors and mentees will be matched by needs, skills, and experiences not on geographic proximity.  This pilot year is limited to a maximum of 20 teachers within 3-5 years of their first teaching assignment. Future ACTFL mentoring programs will be based on the feedback from this pilot program.

Position Statements. The Delegate Assembly provided commentary and feedback concerning Position Statements on 1) the use of target language in the classroom and teacher language proficiency; federal legislative priorities; and language learning for heritage speakers.  Already existing ACTFL Position Statements on the following topics can be found online: diversity; teacher recruitment and retention; study abroad and international/community experience; class size; diversity of language choice; and early language exposure. 

Discover Lanuages Month. February has been declared the Discover Languages month for 2008.  An additional focus related to Discover Languages is the Discover Language Teaching bookmark being developed as well as the student podcast contest on the theme “Opening Minds to the World Through Languages”.  Details on competition rules can be found at the ACTFL website. 

Exploring the Possibility. ACTFL is exploring the possibility of joint ACTFL/state organization membership with a goal of member growth and service combining ACTFL resources with local/state knowledge. 

Grants. Information on a variety of grants is available from the JNCL-NCLIS and ACTFL websites.  Among them are a new round for accepting FLAP grant proposal, StarTalk Grants for teacher and student summer programs in critical languages and the Title IV/Fulbright grants, America COMPETES and TEACH grants. 

The CEFR. Keep your ears open for information on two related growing movements.  The Common European Framework of Reference (CEFR), which tracks students’ global skills and proficiency from a common point of reference, is rapidly becoming the benchmark for student assessment in Europe.  A related process becoming well known in the United States is Lingua Folio, a personal assessment based on a common scale and carried by the students throughout their education and career as proof of their level and areas of proficiency. 

Of Interest. Position statements on the following topics are being finalized and should be available to the public in the next few months:  federal legislative priorities; teacher language proficiency and use of the target language in the classroom; and language learning for heritage and native speakers.

Participate! World Language teachers are invited to participate in a needs assessment survey conducted by Dr. Jennifer Eddy concerning professional development for World Language teachers.  For further information on the survey contact Dr. Eddy at worldlanguageed@aol.com .